SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey expresses sadness over Pac-12 collapse

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The conferences of college athletics as fans know them are changing after five schools announced their departure from the Pac-12 last week. 

Oregon and Washington will head to the Big Ten in 2024, and Arizona, Arizona State and Utah will leave the Pac-12 after the 2023-2024 seasons. The five schools follow USC, UCLA and Colorado in leaving the "Conference of Champions."

The exodus of teams leaves the Pac-12 on the brink of extinction as only four schools remain: Washington State, Oregon State, California and Stanford. (Ric Tapia/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

It leaves the Pac-12 on the brink of extinction as only four schools remain: Washington State, Oregon State, California and Stanford. 

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The SEC kicked off conference realignment in 2021 when Oklahoma and Texas announced their intention to leave the Big 12. The two schools will join the SEC in 2024.

SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey joined "The Paul Finebaum Show" on Tuesday and discussed the events of the last week. 

"It just wasn’t one of those great feelings to work in college sports, in my experience," Sankey said when discussing the conference realignment that occurred last week. "I take responsibility where we've made moves. But there was something different last week about the questions around the existence of the Pac-12 conference, given its long and storied history."

SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey speaks during SEC Media Days on July 17, 2023, in Nashville, Tennessee. (Johnnie Izquierdo/Getty Images)

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Sankey expressed sadness for the Pac-12